ILLINOIS. 



395 





or may itself propose amendment* to bo voted 

 on at ft regular election, but it cannot "pro- 

 pose amendments to more t linn one article at 



une session, nor to the same article oftencr 

 than once in four years." 



iilt-s the provisions contained in the sev- 

 eral articles of the constitution, a number of 

 others were proposed and discussed, and some 

 of these wore finally submitted to a separate 



f the people. The most important was 

 one providing for a representation of the po- 

 litical minority in the lower branch of the 

 Legislature. The principle involved in this 

 section has been extensively discussed, but 



r before put in operation in this country. 

 It was regarded by the convention and the 

 press of the State in the light of an important 

 experiment. The section, if adopted, was to 

 take the -place of the seventh and eighth sec- 

 tions of the legislative article, and is in the 

 following words : 



The House of Representatives shall consist of 

 three times the number of the members of the Sen- 

 ate, and the term of office shall be two years. Three 

 representatives shall be elected in each senatorial 

 district at the general election in the year A. i>. 1872. 

 and every two years thereafter. In all elections of 

 representatives aforesaid, each qualified voter may 

 cast as many votes for one candidate as there are 

 representatives to be elected, or may distribute the 

 same, or equal parts thereof, among the candidates, 

 as he shall see nt, and the candidate highest in votes 

 shall be declared elected. 



The subject of town and county subscrip- 

 tions to railroads was also debated at consider- 

 able length, and the following provision finally 

 adopted, subject to the approval of the people 

 by a separate vote : 



No county, town, township, or other municipality, 

 shall ever become subscriber to the capital stock ot 

 any railroad or private corporation, or make donation 

 to, or loan its credit in aicf of such corporation : Pro- 

 vided, however, that the adoption of this article shall 

 not be construed as affecting the right of any muni- 

 cipality to make such subscriptions where the same 

 have been authorized, under existing laws, by a vote 

 of the people of such municipalities prior to such 

 adoption. 



Two other matters which occupied a good 

 deal of attention, and were also submitted to 

 separate votes, related to the Illinois Central 

 Railroad and the Illinois and Michigan Canal. 

 When the former of these great works was 

 first projected, in 1851, the State Legislature 

 had not only granted to it a right of way 

 through the entire length of the State, but had 

 donated alternate sections of land on each side 

 of the track, to aid in its construction. In 

 return for this valuable grant the company 

 was required to pay into the State Treasury 

 seven per cent, of its revenue. An attempt 

 was made in the convention to obtain a release 

 of the company from this obligation. The 

 section separately submitted, relating to this 

 subject, was as follows: 



No contract, obligation, or liability whatever, of 

 the Illinois Central Eailroad Company to pay any 

 money into the State Treasury, nor any lien of the 

 State tipon or right to tax property of said company, 



in accordance with the provision* of the charter of 

 aid company, approved February 10, 1&07, nhull be 

 released, suspended, modified, altered, omir 

 in any manner diminished or impaired by legisla- 

 tive) or other authority ; and all moneys derived from 

 Baid company, after the payment of the State debt, 

 shall bo appropriated and set apart for the payment 

 of the ordinary expenses of the State government, 

 and for no other purposes whatever. 



The Illinois and Michigan Canal was bnilt 

 by the State, and has always been under its 

 control, and the question of allowing its sale 

 or lease gave rise to the most protracted de- 

 bate of the entire session of the convention. 

 This work cost over $6,000,000, and it was 

 claimed had never been a profitable invest- 

 ment. On the one side, it was urged that its 

 management by private owners would be more 

 efficient and more for the interests of the peo- 

 ple than it had ever been in the hands of State 

 officials. On the other hand, it was argued 

 that the canal might be made a valuable source 

 of revenue to the State, and, if it had been 

 "badly managed heretofore, there should be a 

 reform of the system rather than an abandon- 

 ment of the property. The proposition finally 

 submitted to the people was expressed as fol- 

 lows: 



The Illinois and Michigan Canal shall never bo sold 

 or leased until the specific proposition for the sale or 

 lease thereof shall first have been submitted to a vote 

 of the people of the State, at a general election, and 

 hove been approved by a majority of all the votes 

 polled at such election. 



The General Assembly shall never loan the credit 

 of the State, or make appropriations from the Treas- 

 ury thereof, in aid of railroads or canals : Provided, 

 that any surplus earnings of any canal may be appro- 

 priated for its enlargement or extension. 



A Committee on Federal Relations had been 

 originally appointed in the Constitutional Con- 

 vention, and reported an article consisting of 

 three sections, expressing their views of the 

 relation which the State bore to the Federal 

 Union. After some discussion, it was deter- 

 mined not to incorporate this in the constitu- 

 tion, but its substance was embodied in the fol- 

 lowing resolutions, which were adopted by a 

 vote of 42 to 18 : 



Resolved, That the State of Illinois shall be and for- 

 ever remain one of the United States of America, and 

 a member of the American Federal Union and no 

 power exists in the people of this or any other Stato 

 of the Federal Union to secede or dissolve their con- 

 nection therewith, or perform any act tending to im- 

 pair, subvert, or resist, the supreme authority of the 

 United States. 



Resolved, That every citizen of the State owes para- 

 mount allegiance to the Constitution and Government 

 of the United States j and the laws and treaties made 

 in pursuance thereof shall be the supreme law of the 

 land. 



Resolved. That the Constitution of the United States 

 confers full powers on the Federal Government to 

 maintain and perpetuate its existence ; and whenso- 

 ever any State, or any portion of the States, or the 

 people thereofj attempt to secede from the Federal 

 Union, or forcibly resist the execution of its laws, 

 the Federal Government may, by warrant of the Con- 

 stitution, employ armed force in coercing and com- 

 pelling obedience to its authority. 



The following was also adopted : 



